學程課程規劃
除了「亞際文化研究導論」為必修課且為四校國際生及本地生共同修習的課程之外，各校亦規劃了各「批判理論與亞洲現代性」、「當代思潮與社會運動」、「性／別研究」、「視覺文化」等課群的核心課程與週邊課程，以凸顯各校師資特色。歷年來跨校整合課程每學年平均為85至90門課程，中英雙語課程每年平均為25至30門課，佔總課程約35%。除此之外，歷年亦有文化研究國際中心邀請的國際學者駐校授課或是短期講座。
系統發揮了四校的重點研究優勢，以重新了解世界史與全球文化作成參照主軸，選定「批判理論與亞洲現代性」、「當代思潮與社會運動」、「視覺文化」、「性／別研究」五大課群專題。學生可以跨校、跨專題選課。這種跨校與跨領域的體制化機構，不僅在台灣，就連在亞洲或是歐美，都可以說是十分難得的創新建制。
五大課群的研究內容是在台灣社會變遷過程中逐漸摸索形成的在地知識生產，不但具有台灣特色，更有亞際視角的新知識內涵。以下是各課群的設計特點：
主要針對亞洲地區的現代歷史所牽涉的知識建構，提供跨區域文化議題的理論性與脈絡性的切入視角，包括國家主義、殖民社會與後殖民理論、主體化、生命政治、語言與認同、歷史書寫、國家政治暴力、全球化與移工問題等。
著重於當代重要思潮，通過對重要思潮跟亞際在地的文化資源、社會現實與歷史經驗的連結，思考如何啟動「現實」與「思想」的多層次辯證，並透過社會運動來把「思考」具體實踐及調整。課程之規劃將分為三大主題：「東亞公民社會」、「東亞生態」與「二戰的記憶、經驗與前瞻」。
試圖重新思考性別、性、及其他社會元素在全球化的脈絡中如何相互操作、變化位移，特別在文明化／現代化的進程中如何成為社會規訓與社會排斥的載體。本課群以具有在地知識特色的「性／別研究」規劃課程，關注在地、區域與全球不同層次的性／別政治關連佈局，以知識／權力為焦點，既注重主體能動、草根社運與歷史面向，也注重法律、政治與社會制度的結構面向。
以上五個課群主要根據當前國際學界的知識需要和發展趨勢擬定，各自擁有領先的學術強項，發展出可與西方對話的在地知識。
Curriculum
Using IICS as the operative platform to facilitate international collaboration as well as cooperation among the four UST universities, IACS is privileged to be able to offer a curriculum that simultaneously benefits from inputs by the global academic community and from prolific local scholars based at all four UST universities.
The core curriculum covers subjects as diverse as Critical Intellectual History in Asia, East Asian Political Thoughts, Chinese History and Culture, Taiwan Literature and Culture, History of Modern Japanese Thoughts, Critical East Asian Cinema, Contemporary Migrant Workers in Asia, Gender Issues in Asia, Comparative Studies of the Democratic Movements in Taiwan and Hong Kong, Contemporary Critical Theory, and much more. Courses are grouped into five highlighted course clusters, which correspond with the five focal research clusters formed by the UST faculty members. All five clusters are devoted to inspiring original thought that reflects the uniqueness of each Asian culture without negating the relevance of inter-Asian commonalities:
1·The cluster of “Critical Theory and Asian Modernity” emphasizes inquiries into contemporary mechanisms of knowledge formation, adopting theoretical as well as contextual approaches to inter-regional and inter-cultural issues. Major concerns include nationalism, colonialism, post-colonialism, subjectification, bio-politics, language (use) and identity, historiography, state violence, globalization, and labor migration.
2·The cluster of “Contemporary Thought Trends and Social Movements” studies contemporary thought-trends in an endeavor to get a handle on the empirical connections of these trends to inter-Asian cultural resources, historical experiences, and social realities. Through supporting concrete practices of social movements, it intends to explicate and advance the multi-layered, dialectical relationships between the “ideal” and the “real.” The cluster designs courses that cover three major themes: “East-Asian Civil Society,” “East-Asian Ecology,” and “Memories, Experiences and Visions of the Second World War.”
3·The cluster of “Visual Culture Studies” integrates methods of art history and film studies. Concerned with formal aesthetics, historical significance, and social relevance of visual culture within a regional network that connects Taiwan, Northeast Asia, and Asia in general, its focus lies in cultural interactions and the actual impact of globalization.
4·The cluster of “Gender/Sexuality Studies” pays close attention to the trends and practices of gender/sexuality governance. Acknowledging strong ties between civilization and gender/sexuality governance, the cluster is interested in developing its critical interpretation of civilization/multiple modernity, analyzing the power maneuvers of gender/sexuality governance both on the local and on the global scale. It plans and organizes courses that interrogate gender/sexuality politics as they can be mapped locally, regionally, and globally from a distinct, localized perspective. With its main focus on the issue of knowledge/power, the cluster has investigated questions of agency, grassroots movements, and history as it delves into structural dimensions of gender/sexuality governance, such as those of law and policy.
5.The cluster of “Media and Culture Governance” is built upon a transnational, cross-institution, cross-faculty, and cross-disciplinary foundation. Its core concept draws from the European Union’s advocacy of “media and cultural governance,” integrating cultural policies and cultural economics. Its goal is to establish cultural diversity, advocate cultural policies, promote cultural creativity, and effectively utilize cultural intellectual property.